


lost and found | leakira

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Defenders of Tomorrow, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Kind of dark, M/M, Steampunk, Violence, Voltron, Voltron: Legendary Defenders - Freeform, dont get upset at me, its all the voltron characters but changed a little, its just an au, klance, leakira - Freeform, look im just in love with leakira right now, slowburn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-16
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-06-28 11:13:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15706086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: ''you're looking for him and i'm looking for adventure.''''two very different things.''''but they're interconnected.''they're looking for two different things but they find each other.





	1. chapter i: followed

**Author's Note:**

> this is just my take on the leakira au!! i think it's incredible and was really inspired by it so i made this!! :))  
> also a lot of the names of characters are from axolotlator on tumblr!! check out their take on leakira!!

Akira hated the city. It stood for everything he was against and everything he’d never had. Its smiling families and normal people with normal lives seemed to mock him as they jostled past him, no doubt heading to work on a happy, normal day. The sun was shining brightly down on the inhabitants, warming the city and all inside of it. It made Akira sick.

That’s why it was so ironic that he worked within the city. He always ended up back at the city, wandering its streets, pushing pasts its happy families.

He wouldn’t be able to stand it if it weren’t for the underground.

It gave Akira a sick feeling of happiness to know that these people were clueless to what happened underneath their feet, clueless to the truth of the city and the whole world.

It worried a deep, hidden part of him. He was terrified of how stupid the people were; too stupid to realize what was going on right underneath their noses. Akira always squashed that part of him down. It wasn’t his fault they were that stupid. It would destroy them one day, probably for the better.

Regardless, none of these feelings mattered when he was on the streets he hated so much. The people all smiled and greeted each other, the flower boxes left a sickly-sweet fume in the air. As Akira pushed through the crowds and shoved people out of his way, people apologized to him. On the outside, it looked like utopia. And when Akira was younger, he believed it was.

Now, at the ripe old age of nineteen, Akira knew better. He knew the truth of it all, the corruption and the scandals that hid beneath the surface of this smiling city. Every time he saw a smiling child, holding their mother’s hand, reveling in the safety of the city, he wanted to scream the truth from the rooftops. But he couldn’t tell them the truth. It’d throw the whole city into a panic. It would destroy everything the underground had worked for.

No, it was better if they didn’t know.

Today, however, Akira appreciated the bustling city street, because it was probably the only reason he was still alive.

It was hard to understand what exactly had happened. Akira had been running off of adrenaline and instinct for almost three hours now.

Akira had been at the hospital to visit Dante, who was the only person who could help Akira. Unfortunately, Dante wasn’t doing well and was asleep when Akira had arrived. The doctor told Akira that he would likely make a full recovery, but he needed time to do so.

When Akira left the hospital an hour later, he was at a loss. He had nowhere else to go but the underground, and he really hadn’t wanted to involve them in this. But he had no choice.

Outside the hospital had been a man drinking an iced coffee. Akira and the man looked at each other, and Akira felt nervous tingling on his arms and heard alarm bells ringing in his head. He had torn his gaze away and quickly hurried down the street, trying to get lost in the crowd. He'd had a bad feeling about the man.

However, three streets later, the man was still behind him. It confirmed Akira’s suspicion that he was being followed.

Akira didn’t know exactly why he was being followed, but there were a lot of possible reasons. Akira couldn’t even count the many reasons he’d made himself an enemy to people like him, but the reason didn’t matter. All that mattered was that this guy was trailing him, and Akira had no idea what to do.

Akira was scanning the streets, looking for a hideout, but he knew the guy was close. He’d have to put some distance between them if he wanted to hide. He partially considered letting the guy catch up to him and then pitching a fit, but he knew that’d draw too much attention. He didn’t know if this guy had more people with him. He risked another glance back, and sure enough, the guy was still there.

He couldn’t have been much older than Akira, but his height and his muscles made him look much older. He was dark-skinned and had darker hair. Akira took a mental picture of the guy and kept hurrying along, desperate to find a hiding place before the man found him.

He was coming up to a crosswalk, which gave him options. He could cross the street and continue down the crowded street, or he could turn onto the less occupied street. It seemed like a bad idea, but perhaps it would fake the man out; why would he go to a less populated area? But maybe the guy would anticipate that.

Akira had only a few seconds left to choose. He decided to continue down the street when a sign caught his eye.

It was an uninteresting sign hanging over the street. It was a pale green and looked older than Akira. In big, curly font, it read Sterling’s Thrift Store. It was the very definition of a corner store, unassuming and shitty.

In a split second, Akira made his plan. He’d turn the corner and enter this store so he could keep an eye on both streets. When he was sure the coast was clear, he’d leave and head for the underground.

The intersection came up. He took a sharp right and dashed for the door, swinging it open and slamming it shut behind him.

Akira was very wrong in the sense that this shop was unassuming. The shop was packed with people, all milling around. Some people were even staring at him. The shop also smelled horrible and musty. Regardless, Akira ducked his head and headed to the back of the shop.

However, he was soon met with a roadblock. Literally.

A line of people stretched from the register to the wall, packed tightly together. There was no way around them. Akira glanced back at the front of the store, but knew it was too risky to leave yet. He decided to wait at the register and pretend to be interested in the little trinkets they displayed so he could wait for an opening to the back of the store.

Next to him, haggling with the cashier, was a boy about his age. The boy was holding what looked like a piece of an old computer. “You’ve got this way overpriced!” he said, throwing his hands out. “Give it to me for half price.”

“In your dreams, kid,” the cashier said. He was obviously pissed at the kid, and Akira could only imagine how long he’d been haggling.

“It’s a piece of junk,” the kid said. “You don’t need it.”

“Neither do you, so beat it,” the cashier yelled, spraying spit across the boy’s face.

Unfazed, the boy wiped his face and said, “Let’s do seventy-five percent.”

“Full price or nothin’,” the cashier exclaimed. Akira could no longer contain his curiosity. He looked up to fully observe the interaction.

The boy was what Akira would describe as his type. Tan skin, curly brown hair, and he even had a cartilage piercing. Despite the harsh tone of the cashier and the other patrons behind him that were grumbling, the boy had a grin on his face. “Come on, man,” he implored, “you’re holding up the line.”

“Pay full price,” the cashier demanded, “or get out of my store.”

“Jesus,” Akira said, “give him the discount. You’re holding up the whole damn store.”

The cashier and the boy turned to look at him. Akira leaned against the counter, staring the cashier down. The cashier glanced away, clearly uncomfortable at the confrontation. Akira looked at the boy, who was staring at him in admiration.

“Fine,” the cashier muttered. “You can have your damn discount.”

The boy pumped his arms in victory as Akira watched in amusement. The cashier rang up the boy and the boy handed him the money. Once the transaction was finished, the boy turned to Akira, his mouth open as if to say something, but Akira pushed past him towards the back of the store.

“Whoa. Hey,” the boy said, following Akira. “You didn’t let me say thank you.”

“Didn’t do it for you,” Akira said, “but you’re welcome.”

Akira stopped at the back and leaned against the back wall. He was next to clothes that smelled older than the wars, so he figured it was safe to assume no one would come back here. The boy stopped in front of him, clutching the computer piece to his chest.

“Seriously,” he said, “I owe you one. Thank you.”

Akira stared at the boy, dumbfounded. “I didn’t do it to help you,” Akira said slowly. “I did it for myself. You were in my way.”

Either the kid was really stupid, or he wasn’t easily fazed. He gave Akira an easy smile and said, “I know, but it still helped me out.”

Akira stared past the kid and kept his eyes on the door. He didn’t know how much longer he’d have to hide in here before he could leave and get out of the city. He’d have to lie low outside the city for a while before risking the trip to the underground, just in case he was really being tracked.

“If you want anything in this store,” the kid told Akira, “let me know and I’ll buy it for you.”

Akira raised his eyebrows at the boy, who quickly said, “I mean, within reason of course. I’m not going to buy you something worth one hundred bucks.”

Akira snickered a little. “Thanks for the charity, but I don’t need it.”

The boy smiled again. “Still, I owe you. Thank you so much.”

Akira resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the boy. He acted like he’d saved his life. It was just a piece of trash from a junk shop.

The bell above the door chimed as it swung open. “Shit,” Akira muttered. The dark-skinned man had entered.

The boy looked back at the door. “What’s wrong?”

“Fuck!” Akira cursed, ducking down a little. “I have to go.”

The boy looked at Akira, then back at the man, then back at Akira again. “Do you need to get away from that guy?”

Akira looked deep into the boy’s eyes. They were a deep blue, like what the deep ocean had looked like long ago. They made the boy look wiser and brighter, as if he held the secrets of the sea in his eyes. “I do,” Akira whispered.

“Come with me,” the boy said. “I can get us out of here.”

Akira chewed on his lip. He could trust this boy, but it could be another trap. This boy seemed determined to stick to him. Akira looked back towards the man, who was making his way through the store. He didn’t have much time left.

He’d have to trust the boy.

“Okay,” Akira whispered. “Let’s go.”

The boy grabbed Akira’s hand and yanked him towards the back door, which read Employees Only. He pushed the door open, and they found themselves in a small hallway. At the back was another door, which the boy ran towards, Akira being pulled along.

The boy threw the door open and they found themselves in an alleyway. The two sprinted down the alley, Akira’s hand still clasped in the other boy’s. The door behind them slammed open once again, and when Akira looked back, the dark-skinned man was chasing them.

“He’s after us!” Akira yelled to the boy. 

The boy glanced back himself and cursed. He put even more speed into their sprint, but they were running out of alleyway. The two skidded to a stop in front of a large trash can. Akira’s eyes flicked around desperately, trying to come up with a way to get them out of this. 

They could hear the man approaching behind them. The boy cursed again and jumped up on the trash can, pulling Akira up with him.

“Jump for that alleyway!” the boy yelled, pointing diagonally at a break in the buildings.

Akira let go of the boy’s hand and leaped for the break. He just barely made it over the fences and crashed to the ground on the other side.

Akira groaned and pulled himself up into a sitting position. His arms had been torn open and were bleeding, but other than that, he was okay. He forced himself to stand up just as the other boy jumped over, crashing into Akira. They both fell to the ground, and Akira's head smacked against the concrete.

“Oh God. I’m so sorry!” the boy said, scrambling up. “I’m so sorry.”

Akira pulled himself up, his arms and head screaming in pain. “No big deal. We’re not in the clear yet.”

The boy brushed himself off and asked, “How do we get in the clear?”

“We’ll have to leave the city,” Akira said. “When you’re being tracked like this, it’s best to lay low outside of the city for a while.”

“Have you been tracked before?” the boy asked.

Akira ignored his question and said, “We’d have to get to my bike.”

“My car is near here,” the boy said. “It’d be easy to get it.”

Akira shook his head. “Car won’t work. We’d get stuck in traffic.” Akira wiped his bloody hands on his jeans. “We’ll have to get to my bike.”

The boy moved closer to him. “I know this city pretty well. Tell me where your bike is, and I can get us there.”

“We need to be discreet,” Akira told him. “No main roads. We should stick to alleys. Can you do that?”

The boy smirked. “Of course I can.”

“Then let’s do this.”

The boy wasn’t kidding. They walked down the main road for about two minutes before the boy took a left into an alleyway. From there, they jumped fences and moved from alleyway to alleyway, moving closer and closer to Akira’s bike. It took them about a half hour to reach it, but they didn’t run into anyone on the way there. Finally, Akira’s bike was in sight.

Akira dashed from the alley to his bike, which was parked in a small grocery store’s parking lot. The boy jogged after him. “You parked at a grocery store? Did that guy jump you when you were buying groceries?”

Akira squatted down to check his bike as he replied, “’Course not. I parked here to avoid being spotted. Or at least, I tried to.”

“You’re into some shady shit if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Yeah? What about it?” Akira looked up at the boy, slightly irritated, but the boy was smiling at him fondly, his blue ocean eyes sparkling.

“It’s cool,” he said softly.

Akira quickly looked away and busied himself checking the bike. After another minute, he said, “It should be good now. Hop on.”

“Whoa, what?” the boy asked as Akira hopped on.

“What? You got involved, so now you gotta come with me.” Akira tossed him the helmet. “You take the helmet. I don’t need it.”

“What do you mean, involved?” The boy’s voice sounded shrill.

“That big guy saw you with me, which means you could be in danger too. It’s best if you stick with me for a little bit longer.”

The boy smiled as he hopped on the bike. “You should wear the helmet, though. You’re the driver.”

“You’re the new one. I’d rather I bust my brains open, not you.”

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

Akira snorted. “Hold on tight.”

“How tight? Like, squeezing-the-life-out-of-you-tight, or what?”

“Let’s go with that.”

“That’s not really an answer.”

Akira checked the mirrors. “You got the helmet on?”

He heard the familiar thump of the helmet and heard a slightly muffled, “Yeah!”

Akira smiled to himself, revved up the engine, and quickly exited the parking lot. Normally, Akira would have driven slower with a new rider on the back, but he was afraid the man would come back. He wasn’t so afraid of him on his own, but he felt a sense of duty to keep the boy pressed against him safe, which was inconvenient for someone like him.

Therefore, Akira drove quite recklessly, desperate to put the city behind the both of them. He weaved in and out of traffic, driving at least ten miles over the speed limit. Every time he sped up, the boy squeezed a little tighter. Despite this, the boy seemed to be having a good time. Akira could hear his laugh in his ear every time they accelerated.

Soon, they passed through the gateway that served as an entrance to the city. Apparently, it’d been built to safeguard the city when the last war broke out. They’d never taken it down.

Akira didn’t slow down. He kept speeding along the road, dodging cars when they got in his way. “We left the city!” the boy yelled to him.

“We have to go a little further!” Akira yelled back. “It’s safest that way!” He felt the boy nodded against his back, and Akira sped up even more. 

After about ten minutes, he began to slow down. “We going to stop now?” the boy yelled in his ear. Going slower, there wasn't as much noise, so when he yelled Akira flinched. “Oh, sorry,” he said.

“We’ll stop soon,” Akira replied, reaching up to rub his ear. He turned onto a small dirt road and followed it, and soon they were in a small forest. Another five minutes passed, and finally Akira stopped the bike.

The boy got off first, then Akira. The boy’s legs wobbled, but when he pulled off the helmet, his cheeks were flushed and his smile was wide. “That was amazing!”

Akira smiled. “I’m sure it was.” Akira took the helmet from the boy and placed it on his bike.

The boy moved next to him, standing close. Too close. “So, are you going to tell me what that was about?”

“Hm. No.” Akira walked away from the bike.

“Oh, come on,” the boy exclaimed. He jogged after Akira and said, “You took me all the way out here! I want an explanation.”

Akira dropped onto the ground and the boy did the same. “I don’t want to explain it to you. You don’t need to get mixed up in this kind of thing.”

The boy fell silent. Akira thought the boy had finally shut up for good, so he closed his eyes. He felt exhausted. He wanted to fall asleep for a week, but he knew he had to get back to the city soon.

“My name’s Leandro,” the boy said suddenly. Akira looked over and saw the boy staring directly at him.

Akira raised his eyebrows and said, “Okay. Leandro.”

“What’s your name?”

“I’m not telling you.”

Leandro smiled. “You helped me and I don’t even get to know your name?”

“We’re even. I helped you, and you helped me.”

“But then you helped me again. So I owe you again.”

“Would you quit it with that?” Akira snapped, rubbing his face. “You don’t owe me.”

He sighed and crossed his arms. “I’m trying to be nice.”

“No point. We’ll never see each other again.” Akira closed his eyes again. The boy fell silent once more.

They sat in silence for a while before Leandro said, “You have people chasing after you.”

Akira sighed. “Sometimes, yeah. Not all the time.”

“And you ride a super cool motorcycle.”

“Yeah. So?”

“You seem like the adventurous type.” Akira looked over at Leandro, who was fiddling with his hands in his lap.

“One could say that. Why does it matter?” Leandro didn’t respond, just kept fiddling with his hands in his lap.

Akira didn’t say anything, and neither did Leandro. Finally, Leandro said, “My life is pretty dull. I’ve been looking for adventure.”

It sunk in what he was saying. It felt like someone had poured cold water down his back. Leandro wanted to do what he did. He wanted to join him. The thought of Leandro being like him, doing what he did for a living, made his stomach tie into a knot. What Akira did was dangerous and stupid and the last thing that Leandro should be trying to involve himself with.

“No way,” Akira said. “You can’t do what I do.”

“And why not?” Leandro asked. “I'm sure I can handle it.”

“No way,” Akira repeated. “You have no idea what I do. You have no idea what it’s like. You can’t do this with me.”

Leandro stood up. “Please! I helped you out! We can help each other.”

Akira stood up as well and pointed his finger at Leandro. “No! There’s no way! This isn’t the kind of job for someone like you!”

Leandro smacked the finger out of his face. “I’ve been looking for something like this, some amazing adventure, my whole life!” he yelled. “I won’t let you stop me from doing this.”

Akira pointed his finger at him again, this time an inch away from his face. “Let me say it again. No. This isn’t some little fantasy adventure. I’m not some knight in shining armor who’s going to sweep you off your feet into the life of your dreams. I don’t care if you want adventure. I don’t care about you at all!” A lie. “You’re not getting involved in this!”

Leandro shoved Akira, who stumbled backwards. Akira shoved Leandro back, but too hard. Leandro went flying backwards and fell over.

“Shit,” Akira cursed. He rushed over and extended his hand. “I’m sorry Leandro.” Leandro pushed his hand away and stood up on his own. He glared at Akira and crossed his arms.

“Leandro, I’m sorry.” Leandro didn’t say anything, just glared. “You-you can’t do what I do. It’s too dangerous.”

“I can handle it,” Leandro spat out. “If you think I’m too weak, just say so.”

“It has nothing to do with that,” Akira said. “I just think it’s best if you don’t get involved. It’s already affecting the people around me, and now I have to-” Akira stopped. He realized he’d said too much.

“And now you have to what?” Leandro asked.

“Nothing,” Akira said, but it was too late.

“What do you have to do now?” Leandro asked.

Akira moved away from him. “Nothing that concerns you.”

Leandro moved closer to Akira. “Let me help you.”

“No.”

“I owe you.”

“I don’t want you to help me.”

“I could really help you, you know.” Leandro smirked at him. “I helped you today. Think of everything we could do together.”

Akira turned away and faced the trees. He had to admit, they could do a lot together. But he knew almost nothing about Leandro. He could be dangerous, or he could be awful in a fight. There were so many unknown variables. He couldn’t agree.

Yet he had this feeling in his gut that he should trust this boy. Something about the boy drew Akira in. Every time Akira tried to push him away, there was this pang in his gut that told him that he was doing something wrong. Akira didn’t want to listen to his gut, but he knew that in this business, you needed to trust your gut, no matter what.

He turned back to Leandro. “Fine. You can help me with this.”

Leandro’s jaw dropped. “Are you serious?”

“Serious as can be. Then we’ll see if you’re cut out for this kind of thing.”

A smile slowly grew on Leandro’s face. “You won’t regret this, I swear.”

Akira chewed on his lip and nodded. He couldn’t tell Leandro he already regretted getting the boy tangled in something like this. Somehow, he already felt attached to the boy. Maybe it was something about his eyes, which made him look wise beyond his years, or maybe it was his smile that he was always giving Akira. For whatever reason, Akira was instantly drawn to Leandro.

That was bad news for someone like him.

Leandro extended his hand. “I think I deserve to know your name now.”

Akira didn’t take his hand. “We’re going to have to do some bad things. It’s going to get gritty, illegal, and maybe even worse than that. You’re never going to be the same.”

Leandro’s smile dropped. He looked into Akira’s eyes with a fierce determination. “I’m ready.”

Once he took his hand, once he told Leandro his name, there was no turning back. He was going to ruin this boy’s life, or the boy was going to ruin his life. It wasn’t too late. He could tell Leandro he’d changed his mind. He could tell him it was simply too dangerous. He could take him back to the city and never see him again.

He took the boy’s hand. “My name’s Akira.”


	2. chapter ii: diner

“What time is it?”

“How many more times are you going to ask me that?”

“I’m going to ask until we can leave.”

Leandro and Akira had been waiting in the forest for an hour and a half. Leandro wanted desperately to leave, but Akira knew they needed to wait a little longer. The encounter with the man had rattled him more than he’d have liked to admit, and he wanted to make sure they’d be safe when they went back.

Akira sighed and told Leandro, “We should be able to leave soon. Just give it a little more time.”

Leandro kicked at the dirt. “I’m bored.”

“I’m sure you are.”

Leandro turned towards Akira and crossed his legs. “So tell me what’s going on. Tell me what I’m helping you with.”

Akira rubbed his hands together as he studied Leandro. “It’s a mystery.”

“Come on, just tell me!” Leandro groaned.

“No, that’s the answer. It’s a mystery. I’m not sure what happened.”

“Oh.” Leandro’s cheeks flushed. “Sorry. Continue.”

Akira swallowed hard and slowly said, “It’s a disappearance. I suspect it was an organized kidnapping, but I don’t know. I don’t have enough evidence. Which is why we need to-”

“Whoa, whoa,” Leandro interrupted, “slow down. Give me the whole story. Who disappeared? How do you know?”

Akira exhaled and looked up at the sky. He didn’t really want to share the full story. It would be like an acknowledgement that it had happened and that this wasn’t all a bad dream. He could feel the numb pain in his chest every time he thought about it, and the ache got worse every time he remembered he didn’t know how to fix this.

“Akira?” Akira snapped back to reality and looked back at Leandro, who was watching him with concern. “If you want me to help you, you need to tell me what happened.”

“I don’t want you to help me. You want to help me,” Akira said, perhaps too forcefully.

Leandro wasn’t deterred. “You can tell me. I want to help.”

Akira rubbed his face and said, “Okay, fine. I guess it started about…yesterday, I guess.”

Leandro didn’t say anything, so Akira continued. “I came home at about midnight, and Hachi and Dante always hate when I do that, so I was ready for a lecture, but they weren’t home. And it was midnight, so I was like ‘that’s weird, oh well,’ like I thought they were just working late at the Garrison, but-”

“Wait, the Garrison?” Leandro asked. His face was bright and his winning smile was back. “I go to school there!”

Akira felt the color drain from his face. “Oh. You do?”

“Yeah!” Leandro exclaimed, fiddling with the zipper of his jacket. When he had opened it, he showed Akira the Garrison shirt underneath. “I’m training to be a fighter pilot.”

Akira tried to swallow, but his throat felt dry. “So you know Hachiko and Dante.”

“Well, they’re my teachers, but yeah,” Leandro replied, nodding. “You live with them?”

“Long story,” Akira recovered from the tangent and waved Leandro off. “Anyway, I just thought they were working late, so I went to bed, but I woke up and they were back. I started freaking out because I didn’t know where they were so I called Dante’s cell and some doctor picked up and he told me that Dante had been found unconscious in an alleyway and was in the hospital. So I rushed over to the hospital and the doctor-”

“Wait, are Hachi and Dante a thing?” Leandro asked. “Like, are they dating?”

Akira paused. “Have you been listening to anything I’ve said?”

“Oh, yeah, I’ve been listening,” Leandro said, “but I just can’t get over that. I mean, everyone suspected it and someone once claimed she’d seen them holding hands but we didn’t really think that they were actually a thing, you know?”

Akira didn’t know what to say.

“Uh, they are a thing, right?” Leandro looked awkward.

Akira hesitated before saying, “Yes. They are.”

Leandro nodded. “Cool. Cool. Uh, continue.”

“Uh, where was I at?”

“Hospital, I think.”

“Right.” Akira nodded and fiddled with his jacket. “So I went to the hospital to visit Dante, but when I got there he was asleep. So I talked to the doctor and he said that Dante had been awake earlier and had claimed that he and Hachi had been attacked in an alleyway, but they didn’t find Hachi anywhere. So I knew right then that it was foul play.”

“How did you know that?” Leandro asked.

Akira shrugged. “If it was a simple mugging, they’d have taken their stuff and left them both unconscious. It would have been the same thing for senseless violence. If they just wanted to kill someone, they’d have killed them both. If they were turning Hachi in for a bounty, they wouldn’t have left any witnesses-”

“Bounty?” Leandro interrupted for the third time. “What do you mean, bounty? How do you know they wouldn't leave any witnesses?"

“Can I get through my damn story?”

Leandro winced. “Sorry.”

“Point is,” Akira said, “if there wasn’t a purpose to this, they’d have taken them both or killed them both. This was deliberate. Hachiko was targeted and kidnapped, and I’m going to figure out who did it.” Akira’s clenched his fists. “I have to.”

Leandro put his hand on Akira’s arm. “ _We’re_ going to find out who did it.”

Akira felt a rush of gratitude towards the other boy. Akira had been short with him and made it obvious he didn’t want him around, but Leandro still insisted on helping. Sure, it was for his own motives, but he was grateful Leandro wanted to tag along.

Akira glanced at his watch. “Oh. We can head back to the city now.”

The two stood and made their way back to Akira’s motorcycle. “What do we do once we get to the city?” Leandro asked.

Akira leaned against the bike and thought for a moment. “I’m not sure. I know we need to get-” He paused, glanced at Leandro, and said, “-somewhere. But we should wait until dark.”

“Why do we have to wait until dark? Where are we going?” Leandro asked, a frown crossing his face.

“You’ll find out,” Akira replied, chucking the helmet at him. Leandro caught it and Akira continued, “That gives us a few hours to kill, so I don’t know what we’ll do until dark.”

Leandro’s stomach growled loudly. “Holy shit,” Akira said, “was that you?”

Leandro glanced down, his cheeks once again red. “I’m really hungry.”

Akira smiled. “Guess I know the first thing we’ll do when we get back.”

☆☆☆☆☆

Akira took Leandro to a shitty little diner on the outskirts of the city. It was on the third floor of an old high-rise building and smelled like grease and smoke. It took Akira five minutes to convince Leandro to enter.

“No way! This place is shady!”

“Yeah, which is what makes it a good hiding place!”

Finally, after lots of coercing, Akira got Leandro in the diner. The linoleum tile flooring was stained with grease and who knows what else, and the wallpaper was peeling. Despite this, there were a few people in the place, although Akira was sure the two in the corner were making a deal on some quintessence-related drug. Leandro was very uncomfortable.

They seated themselves in a booth in the corner. The leather covered the seats was partially ripped off, exposing the squishy underneath. Leandro wrinkled his nose and said, “I don’t like this place.”

“It’s seedy,” Akira said, picking at something sticky on the table, “but it’s got good food.”

Leandro mumbled something about how he doubted that and crossed his arms. A waitress dropped off glasses of water and menus for the two. The woman side-eyed Leandro, and Akira realized it might have been a bad idea to take him here. Leandro looked way too clean cut for a place like this. With his long black hair pulled back in a ponytail and his familiar old clothes, Akira fit right in with the rest of the weirdos in the room. Leandro, however, looked well put together and good, unlike everyone else in the diner.

“Hey, Akira.” Leandro’s voice pulled Akira out of his thoughts. “What should I order?” When Akira looked up at the boy, he had his menu propped up and was peeking over the top.

Akira bit his lip to hide his laugh and said, “Just get the same thing as me.” Leandro nodded but left his menu shield up.

The waitresses strode over and said, “What can I get you boys?”

“I’ll have a regular burger and fries,” Akira answered, smiling at the waitress.

“Sure thing, sugar,” she said with a wink. Akira’s cheeks went pink and he looked away.

“I’ll have, um, what he’s having,” Leandro stuttered. The waitress nodded at him and took their menus away.

Leandro frowned. “How come she called you ‘sugar’? What about me?”

Akira snorted and told him, “At least you’re not getting hit on by the waitress.”

“You blushed when she winked at you. You liked it."

“I did not! I just got flustered!” Akira said defensively. “I was uncomfortable!”

“Uh-huh,” Leandro said, taking a sip of his water. “Sure.”

Akira rolled his eyes and the two lapsed into silence. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Akira said, “So, uh, how old are you?”

Leandro cocked his head to the side. “I’m eighteen. Why?”

“Figures,” Akira said, “you look about my age.”

“How old are you?”

“Just turned nineteen.”

Leandro nodded and asked, “Why did you want to know my age?”

Akira cleared his throat and looked down at the seat. Instead of answering, he picked at the seat. “Akira?” Leandro asked.

Akira looked up. “No reason. I was just curious. Pretty sure I could get arrested if I pulled a minor into this.” No sense in telling him that there were many other things Akira could get arrested for.

Leandro nodded and the two fell into silence again. Truthfully, Akira had wanted to tell Leandro the truth-that the two of them might have been in the same class in the Garrison before Akira dropped out. Dropping out had pissed Hachiko off, but it had really been the best decision for Akira. However, he’d never seen Leandro before, despite the fact that both of them were training to be fighter pilots.

Akira was drawn out of his thoughts by Leandro saying, “Tell me more about yourself, Akira.”

“I’m surrounded in mystery,” Akira said. “You can’t know more about me.”

Leandro snorted. “We’re partners in questionable action now! I deserve to know more about you!”

Akira propped his head up on his elbow. “Do you now?” He leaned across the table, closer to Leandro.

Leandro mimicked his actions and smirked. “I do.”

The two were only inches apart. Akira could see every little detail on his face; the freckles that sprinkled his tan skin, the different shades of blue that shone in his eyes, the dimples that creased his face when he smiled. It occurred to Akira that the two of them were much too close. He knew he should say something, maybe give a witty reply, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. Seconds ticked by, and neither boy moved.

Finally, Akira pulled his head back. “Why don’t you tell me more about you?” he said.

Leandro leaned back in his seat, pulling one leg up to his chest. “Well, I’m Leandro. Eighteen. I go to the Garrison to become a fighter pilot.”

“I already knew those things,” Akira said. “Something new.”

Leandro looked in deep thought for a moment before saying, “I was born and raised in Cuba.”

That piqued Akira’s interest. “What was that like?”

Leandro got a faraway smile on his face and said, “It was nice. Cuba was really nice. We moved here when I got accepted into the Garrison.”

Akira nodded. “Makes sense. No one would move from Cuba to this shithole.”

Leandro shrugged. “Cuba wasn’t always nice. There were lots of storms and street fights.”

“There’s a lot of street fights here,” Akira said in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Not as often as in Cuba.”

Akira doubted that but didn’t feel like arguing over the number of street fights in Cuba. It was more likely that Leandro didn’t see all the fights, as many went on in the underground.

Akira was about to ask more questions, but the waitress came over with their food. She set the plates down on the table and asked, “Need anything else?”

“No, we’re good,” Akira said. She smiled at him and left.

Leandro peered skeptically at the food. “This looks…fattening.”

“Yeah,” Akira said with his mouth full. “’S good.”

Leandro pouted. “I don’t think it is.”

“Try it.”

Leandro frowned as he grabbed the burger and took a bite.

“Well?” Akira asked, taking a drink of water.

Leandro continued to glare as he took another bite, then another. Akira laughed at him.

Neither boy spoke for the rest of the meal. They simply sat and ate, pondering their own thoughts. Akira had to think about what would happen next. He’d have to get to the underground and talk with some people to start his search. His first stop would be Petra.

However, Leandro proved a problem. He clearly knew nothing of what the underground was and what happened within it. Akira didn’t want to ruin that and tell him, but he had no choice. What terrified Akira most, though, was the uncertainty. Akira had no idea what was going to happen next, and that wasn’t a feeling that he liked. He could plan and anticipate, but in the end he wouldn’t know what would happen until it was over.

The more he thought about this, the worse he felt about pulling Leandro into the mess he was in. Leandro was new and had no idea what he was getting into, and he was about to be pulled into what Akira felt would be the messiest problem he’d ever dealt with.

He forced these thoughts out of his head. He decided he’d focus on each problem one by one. Number one on the list was to get to the underground without a problem, which probably wouldn’t happen with Leandro with him. Still, it was the only start he had.

The waitress dropped off the check, and both Leandro and Akira reached for it.

“What are you doing?” Akira asked.

“Paying for my half?” Leandro said. “Like a decent person?”

“I’m paying,” Akira said, grabbing it.

“Why?”

“Because we’re ‘partners in questionable action,' remember?” Akira said, glancing up at Leandro. Leandro had his big, goofy grin on his face, and Akira snorted at him.

When they left the diner, Leandro let out a big breath. “Thank God,” he said, “that place was horrible.”

Akira laughed. “Just you wait, buddy. We’ll be in worse places tonight.” He started down the hall.

Leandro followed him and said, “I doubt it. That’s the worst place possible.”

“Sure,” Akira said, “believe what you want.”

Leandro was silent for a second before he said, “Where are we going now that’s going to be worse than that?” He almost sounded scared.

Akira glanced over at the boy and saw the apprehension in his face. His felt his heart twinge with regret, once again, for letting Leandro be a part of this. Still, he couldn’t lie to him. He stopped walking and turned to face Leandro.

Leandro’s goofy grin from moments before was gone, replaced with a worried grimace. “Akira?”

Akira reached up and placed his hand on Leandro’s shoulder. “We’re going to the underground, so you better be ready.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> expected like -1 ppl to read this so?? thank u for reading??  
> also sorry if updates become slow bc i started this just as school started so sorry!! thank u all again <3


	3. chapter iii: underground

“Okay, remind me again what I have should and shouldn’t do in the underground?”

“Leandro, chill out,” Akira said. “You’re stressing out about this.”

Leandro stopped pacing and stared Akira down. “Obviously! We’re going to the underground!”

Akira shook his head and looked away from Leandro. Seconds ticked past and he heard Leandro continue pacing.

The two were in an alleyway a little way from the entrance to the underground. Akira didn’t want to go until it was dark, so Akira was waiting. Leandro, on the other hand, was having a mental breakdown.

“I’ve lived here for years,” Leandro muttered. “Six years, to be exact. And that whole time, there’s been this weird underground drug cartel?”

“There’s more to it than that,” Akira said. “A lot more.”

“Like what?”

“Pretty much anything illegal,” Akira said. “If it’s illegal, it’s down there.”

Leandro leaned against the building wall opposite Akira. “I can’t believe this.”

Akira didn’t blame him. Leandro’s reaction was why the whole operation was a secret. Of course, there was the problem of the morality of the situation-normal people wouldn’t like drugs and illegal trade running rampant. But there was more to it. Leandro seemed like a pretty level-headed guy, but he was losing it over the knowledge of this organization. Akira was sure that the entire city would react the same way if they knew.

Still, Akira had to thank his lucky stars (if there was such a thing) that Leandro hadn’t run away. If the situations were reversed, Akira would have run straight to the city and told them everything. Leandro, though, was sticking with Akira. He couldn’t deny the boy’s thirst for adventure.

“Please,” Leandro begged, tearing Akira away from his thoughts, “go over what I should and shouldn’t do again.”

Akira sighed. “It’s not that hard.”

“Yes, it is,” Leandro contradicted. “Please.”

Leandro looked so scared and miserable. His mouth was pulled into a frown and his arms were crossed defensively across his front. Akira had no choice but to cave in. “Fine.”

Leandro sighed with relief and leaned forward. “Okay. Just one more time.”

“First of all, don’t talk to anyone except for me,” Akira said. “Second, don’t talk to anyone I talk to. Stick with me. Don’t wander off on your own. Don’t even look at someone else, okay?”

“Wait, why can’t I look at someone else?” Leandro asked. “That seems unnecessary.”

“It’s a precaution,” Akira told him. “It’s pretty obvious you aren’t supposed to be down there.”

“What does that mean?”

Akira laughed. “You’re not going to fit in down there. You just don’t…look like it.”

Leandro frowned again and went silent. The two stood in silence, Akira leaning against his bike and Leandro against the wall, until Leandro quietly said, “I don’t like this, Akira. Is there really no other way to do this?”

Akira frowned. “There’s no other way, Leandro. Are you seriously considering backing out?”

“I never said that,” Leandro said softly. He was staring out to the street, where people passed, oblivious to the two boys shrouded in the dark. Akira was sure he was envious of them, blissfully unaware of what was happening.

“Then what are you saying?”

Leandro bit his lip. “What if I get recognized down there? I’d get kicked out of the Garrison.”

“Oh.” Akira felt stupid. Of course Leandro was worried about getting involved in this. If he got caught, he’d undoubtedly get kicked out of the Garrison. This could ruin Leandro’s life. “You won’t get recognized. Keep your jacket zipped up. We’ll get you a change of clothes soon.” He tried to smile at the boy. “I’ll make sure you won’t get recognized.”

Surprisingly, Leandro smiled back with that fond look in his eyes, shining in the dying sunlight. Akira found himself mesmerized.

Neither boy said anything else, standing in silence as the light faded around them. Finally, it was completely dark. The buildings around them glowed and the people outside faded from people heading home from work to people heading out to go clubbing or do other various questionable acts, just like them.

“It’s time,” Akira said. “Let’s go.”

Leandro’s face, illuminated in the neon glow of the buildings, showed apprehension and fear. Despite this, the boy stood up and walked over to Akira. “Let’s do this.”

The two walked together back to the main street and joined the throngs of people. Some gave them strange looks, as they’d emerged from an alleyway, but most people ignored them.

The city at night was more bearable for Akira. It was filled with people off to make bad decisions, just like him. He looked around and saw people whose lives were falling apart, just like him.

Aside from the underground, the streets at night was the only place he belonged.

A girl in a mini-skirt pushed past him. Akira stumbled backwards into Leandro. “Be careful,” Leandro muttered, “it’s crazy out here.”

The two followed the flow of the crowd for a little while longer before Akira said, “We’re almost there.”

Leandro’s gripped Akira’s arm. He could feel the damp sweat through his jacket sleeve. He pushed his hand off, but Leandro grabbed his arm again, so Akira just accepted it.

Finally, Akira could see the familiar alleyway. The faded posters hanging on the wall fluttered in the cool night breeze. “Right there,” Akira whispered the Leandro. “That’s where we’re heading.” Leandro’s grip on his arm tightened as Akira moved towards the edge of the crowd.

Finally, they were at the alleyway. It looked even darker than usual tonight. Akira tried to press on, but Leandro pulled him back. “I have a bad feeling about this, Akira,” Leandro said.

Akira looked nervously at the crowd. “We don’t have a choice.” He didn’t want someone to question why they were standing there. They needed to move.

“Akira, please,” Leandro said. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Leandro, listen to me,” Akira said forcefully, “we don’t have a choice.”

“Yes, we do,” Leandro said, squeezing his arm so tightly he could feel the blood stop pumping. “Let’s come back tomorrow morning.”

“They won’t be there.”

“Who’s they?”

“Leandro, come on,” Akira said, “let’s go.” He tried to drag the boy, but Leandro dug his heels into the ground.

“I won’t go,” Leandro said. “I’ve got a bad feeling.”

Akira was pissed. They were wasting time. He leaned into the younger boy’s face and said, “You want adventure, right? Well, this is it! It’s creepy and scary and you don't know what's going to happen. So let’s go, or you can just leave!”

Leandro swallowed hard, then loosened his grip on Akira’s arm. “Fine. Let’s go.”

“Thank you,” Akira sighed, and the two set off down the alley. Akira kept looking back to make sure the people on the street hadn’t noticed, but if they had they didn’t care. Everyone continued on their way. Leandro, however, was looking around. His grip on Akira’s arm tightened again.

“This way.” The two continued down the alleyway. They were almost to the end, where the door was waiting for them, when something behind them fell over.

Both boys whirled around. No one was there, but a trash can had fallen over. Leandro made a squeaking noise. “It’s the wind,” Akira said, but he knew there was doubt in his voice. Were they being followed again? “Let’s just go. We’ll be safe once we get down there.”

They reached the door. It was old and well-worn, and there were even a few holes in it. Akira grabbed the knob without hesitation and swung the door open.

They were inside an old apartment building. It smelled like dust and mold, and there were no lights. The only light came from the city behind them, streaming in to illuminate the dust motes in the air.

“Gross,” Leandro muttered. “Is this the underground?”

“No,” Akira responded, “it’s an entrance to it.” He slowly shut the door behind him, but not before glancing down the alley once more. He felt like they were being followed, but he couldn’t stop now. They were too close to safety.

With the door closed, it was completely dark. Leandro pulled out his phone and used the screen to illuminate the surroundings, but Akira didn’t need it. He took Leandro by the arm and pulled him along, heading towards the back of the building. They were a little way in when they heard the door creak open. Both boys froze and looked at each other. “We’re being followed,” Leandro whispered. Akira could hear the fear in his voice.

“We’ll be fine,” Akira whispered back. “Let’s keep going.” Despite his reassurance, Akira was moving faster than he should have. Their footsteps were echoing, leading the person right to them, but Akira didn’t care. They were close enough to the underground. If they were fast, they could get there in time. Not to mention, whoever it was probably already knew about the underground, so they’d already know where they were going. Their only choice was to get to the underground.

They reached a dark room in the back with a rug in it. The rug was discolored and musty. Akira shut the door behind them. “Hurry,” he whispered, “move the rug.” The creaking of the wooden floor behind them was getting closer. Leandro bent down and shoved the rug out of the way, pushing it against the wall opposite them. Underneath was a wooden trap door.

“What now?” Leandro asked, glancing behind them.

“We go through it,” Akira said, opening the trapdoor. They couldn’t see down it, but there was a ladder attached to the floor leading down. “You go first.”

Leandro started to say something, but he was cut off by the door slamming open. They were right. Someone had followed them.

“Go!” Akira yelled. The person shot a gun, and the blast just barely missed Akira’s neck. Leandro yelled something to him, but Akira didn’t hear him. He charged the person and tackled them, pushing whoever it was against the wall. Akira brought his palm up and slammed it against the person’s nose. He felt blood gush out, but the person wasn’t fazed. They slammed their elbow against Akira’s jaw, and Akira fell to the side.

Akira moved back towards the person, but his arms were pulled behind his back by one powerful hand and the barrel of a gun was pressed against his head. Akira immediately stopped moving.

“Come out,” the person said. It was definitely a man; the voice was gruff and deep. “Wherever you are, come out or I’ll blow your friend’s brains out.”

Akira heard the trapdoor creak open just a little. It was lifting up from the inside. Leandro must have gotten inside of it. He was safe, but not for long. Akira had to do something.

He used all of his strength to pull his arms out of the man’s grip and brought his elbow up to the man’s face. He felt something crack when he made contact, and the man stumbled backwards. Akira kicked the man in the stomach, and he doubled over, wheezing. He turned back to the trapdoor, and Leandro was waiting with it open. “Hurry!” Leandro yelled.

Akira dashed over as Leandro started climbing down the ladder. Akira climbed in right after and started his descent, closing the trapdoor as he went. Just as the trapdoor was about to close, the man looked up and looked straight at Akira.

It was the same man from earlier that day. He was chasing them.

The trapdoor closed with a thud. Akira was certain the man would follow them. “Hurry up,” he called down to Leandro. “We need to put some distance between us and him.” Leandro grunted in response several feet below him. Akira fell silent and continued the climb down, staring directly up at the trapdoor. But it never opened.

Finally, he hit solid ground. He jumped away from the ladder and turned around. Leandro was leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. “What the fuck was that about?” Leandro heaved. “Who was that?”

“Same guy as before,” Akira said. “We have to keep moving.”

“Sure thing,” Leandro panted. “Just…let me catch my breath.”

Akira gave him a few more seconds before he grabbed his arm and pulled him along again. “We have to keep moving.” Leandro said nothing, so the two walked in silence in the dank underground passage.

Almost five minutes had passed before they reached a large metal door. Akira and Leandro both paused in front of it. Akira knew that the man could be behind them, but he was hesitant to open the door with Leandro.

“What’s wrong?” Leandro asked.

Akira turned to him. “Once you come in here, there’s no backing out. I’m serious. This is your last chance to run. If you back out now, I’ll take you back to the main road and we can forget that this ever happened.”

Leandro stared at Akira. “I’m not backing down now. I've come too far.”

“Are you sure?”

“One-hundred percent,” Leandro said resolutely.

Akira bit his lip. “Alright. Then let’s go.” He grabbed the handle of the door and pulled it open.

The room they entered was a gross underground chamber. The walls were made of wood and concrete, and the floors were stained with much worse than the diner they’d been to. The place was packed with people who were just like Akira, sad and tired. They were either drinking or talking. In the back was a grimy little bar and a bunch of stations that people set up as they were there. There were also several doors that led further into little side rooms for the even more illegal activities, but most people stuck to the main room.

The two boys fully entered the room, shutting the door behind them. The room went silent and Akira didn’t move. Seconds ticked by, and finally some of the noise started up again. Unfortunately, it was obvious Leandro didn’t belong there. He looked terrified, and some of the others had noticed and were staring at him.

Akira felt the panic settle in his gut. He didn’t want anyone to look at him or Leandro. He needed to get them both out of there. In a panic, he grabbed Leandro’s hand and laced their fingers together before pulling him through the tables, heading towards the back.

☆☆☆☆☆

“What are you doing?” Leandro whispered.

“Trying to help you blend in,” Akira whispered back. “Try to not look so scared.”

Easier said than done. The underground was the creepiest place Leandro had ever been. The whole place smelled like cheap liquor and sweat, and the people were leering at him. It was obvious he’d never been here before. He couldn’t help but try and take everything in.

When he’d said he wanted adventure, this wasn’t exactly what he’d imagined. This was very, very illegal. He was certain that if this place was busted, everyone inside, himself included, would go to jail.

The place was huge. How had the government not found out about it?

Of course, Leandro could be the one to tell them. But he didn’t want to. He knew that he should. He knew that it’s what a good citizen would do. He knew that if he got caught, it would ruin his life and his family’s life. But he could never betray Akira like that.

Akira was the most complex person Leandro had ever met. He was very standoff-ish and obviously didn’t want Leandro around, but seemed to respect his thirst for adventure. But it also seemed like there was a caring side to him. On top of that, he seemed broken and sad. When he looked around the underground, he looked resigned. He looked like he was in the home he never wanted. He looked as if he hated being there but knew he had no choice. Leandro wanted to uncover that. He wanted to know why he felt that way.

He wanted to help Akira, just like he was helping him.

Leandro’s whole life had been spent the same way. He’d always been the teacher’s pet. He’d always done exactly what was expected of him. Eventually, he got bored of the same old lifestyle. He wanted something fresh, something new.

He wanted an adventure.

He might have been in the land of dreams, but it sure as hell wasn’t the land of his dreams. This place wasn’t adventurous. There was nothing adventurous to do except explore the city when he wasn’t supposed to. However, attending the Garrison made this a lot harder: it was impossible to sneak out, and their only free days were Sundays.

He cast a glance at Akira. Akira was scanning the crowded back of the room, probably looking for someone. Thanks to Akira, Leandro would finally be able to experience an adventure. He could never tell the government what was going on here. Maybe it was selfish, to not let the normal people know the truth, but when he looked at Akira, he knew he could never betray him.

At least, he thought he couldn’t.

Finally, Akira seemed to find the person he was looking for. His hand was still clasped inside of Leandro’s, but he didn’t let go as he wove through the crowd, heading for the dark corner of the dank room.

The two stopped in front of a blond person with short hair, some sort of headset, and brown overalls. They looked up as the two approached the table but said nothing. Leandro couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl.

They stopped about a foot from her. They said nothing, just stared blankly at the two of them. Slowly, their eyes moved to their conjoined hands. Akira quickly let go of Leandro’s hand and said, “Pana, I need your help.”

Pana’s tongue snaked out of their mouth and licked their lips. “I don’t help strangers for free.”

“I’m not a stranger,” Akira said. 

Pana stared blankly at Akira. “Look like one to me.”

Akira groaned. “Pana, seriously, cut it out and help me.”

Pana’s eyes flicked over to Leandro and narrowed. “I don’t help strangers, especially ones who don’t belong here.”

Leandro felt his face heat up. It was embarrassing enough that he hadn’t help Akira when the man had attacked them on the way here, but now he was the reason Akira wasn’t getting the help he needed.

“Don’t worry about him,” Akira said, “he’s my friend. He’s helping me.”

“Oh yeah?” Pana said. They licked their lips again. “That’s nice.”

Akira leaned in close to the person and said forcefully, “Petra. Help me.”

They flinched and said, “Okay, okay! Fine! Keep your voice down.”

“So are you going to help out?” Akira playfully asked.

“Yes,” they (or was it she?) grumbled, “if you shut up.”

Akira laughed. It was a really nice sound. Leandro thought he should do it more often. “I need you to help me with something,” Akira said.

“Um, can someone explain to me what’s going on?” Leandro asked. “I’d just like to, you know, understand what’s happening.”

Akira turned to Leandro and his smile slowly slipped off his face, much to Leandro’s dismay. “This is Pana,” he introduced. “Her real name is-”

“Don’t!” Pana yelled. “What about my veil of secrecy?”

“You can trust him,” Akira said. “He’s helping me with something.”

Pana eyed Leandro suspiciously but said nothing more. Akira continued, “Pana’s real name is Petra. She goes by the alias of Pana down here and uses they and them pronouns to throw people off who she really is.”

“And who is she, really?” Leandro asked.

Petra (Pana? All this name and pronoun changing was messing with Leandro) said, “No one, really. But the less personal information people know about me, the better.”

“That’s smart,” Leandro said. “It keeps you safe.”

Petra smiled at Leandro. “I like you,” she said. “Akira told me it was stupid as hell.”

Akira rolled his eyes at Petra. “Whatever. That was once.”

Petra stuck her tongue out. “What can I help you gentlemen with?”

“I need to talk to Theo,” Akira said immediately.

“You’re a little late, my friend,” Petra said. “He left his morning.”

“You better be fucking with me,” Akira said. “No way he left. He said he wasn’t leaving yet.”

“Schedule got moved up,” Petra said. “He didn’t plan on leaving. It just happened.”

“Fuck!” Akira yelled, slamming his hand down on a computer. The people nearby stared at him, but he didn’t seem to care.

“Watch it!” Petra yelled. “Be careful around my stuff!”

“Sorry,” Akira apologized. “I just really needed his help.”

“Good thing you’ve got his lovely younger sister at your disposal,” Petra said.

“Who’s Theo?” Leandro interrupted.

Petra looked over at him again. “He’s my older brother. He works for the Garrison. He’s one of those astronauts that goes and collects goods from other planets and junk. Gives most of it back to the Garrison. He’s also an information broker. If you need to know something, he’s the person you go to.”

“Oh,” Leandro said before he could stop himself, “him.”

Petra raised her eyebrows. “You know him?”

Leandro did, in fact. He’d seen Theo several times at the Garrison, and once he’d even helped him unload stuff from the ship. In return, Theo had given him a space geode. It was sitting on Leandro’s desk at home. It didn’t surprise Leandro that Theo was involved in the underground. He wasn’t the type to follow the rules. Leandro often saw him in the halls, getting chewed out by a commanding officer for not doing something right. Theo never seemed to care.

Of course, he wouldn’t have been able to see Theo if he wasn’t a Garrison student, which was something he wasn’t supposed to mention. “Oh, I uh,” he stammered.

Akira sighed. “Leandro’s a Garrison student,” he whispered to Petra. “We’re trying to keep it secret. Don’t tell anyone else.”

Petra smirked. “I wouldn’t dream of it.” She leaned back stretching her arms. “What do you need? What’s up?”

Akira filled Petra in on what had happened, and Petra’s easy-going attitude dropped. “Are you serious? That’s weird.”

“I know,” Akira said, “so I’m going to need your help.”

“What do you want me to do?” Petra said. “I don’t know how much hacking can help.” She bit her lip. “Besides, are you sure that this is what you think it is? Maybe you’re reading too much into this.”

Akira shook his head. “I’m sure that something’s wrong.”

Petra sighed. “Alright. What do you want me to do?”

“I don’t know, hack into the cameras near the area and try and find out what happened.”

“That’s pretty damn broad, Akira. I’m going to need more to go off of.”

Akira groaned and rubbed his face. “That’s really all I have. Hack into the police station and find the accident record to figure out where it was, then find the security footage around that area.”

“You really think it’s that easy?”

“I know it is. You’ve done a lot harder for me before.”

Petra sighed. “Fine, I’ll do it.”

Akira sighed with relief. “Thank you.”

“In the meantime,” Petra said, pulling a computer towards her, “you should go check which bounties have been turned in. Maybe someone wanted him gone.”

Akira’s face went pale. “No one would want him gone.”

“You don’t know that,” Petra said, not looking up. “Go check.”

“Fine,” Akira said. “Be back soon.” He turned to Leandro. “Come on, we’re going to check that list.”

Leandro nodded and Akira began to walk across the room. “So,” Leandro started, following him, “what’s her-I mean, their, thing?”

Akira glanced over at Leandro. “They’re a hacker. They’ll do pretty much anything online that you pay them to do.”

“Are we paying them?”

“No. We’re friends, so it’s a favor.”

“Is that all they do?”

“Nah. They do a lot more stuff. They help Theo with whatever shit he’s doing and helps repair computers. Has a buddy that mostly does that, though.”

“Whoa.” Leandro felt star-struck. “Cool.”

Akira shrugged. “It’s a lot messier than you’d think.”

“And what’s this about bounties?” Leandro asked. “What does that mean?”

“You’re pretty clueless, you know that?” Akira said. "You ask too many questions."

“That’s not fair! I’m new here!” Leandro protested.

“I’m just teasing you, Leandro.” He turned to the boy and smiled at him. It was obvious that no matter how much he hated this place, he was a lot more comfortable here. “Try to keep up.”

Leandro frowned. “Easy for you to say.”

Akira smiled again. “Come on, Leandro,” he said. “We have a list to check.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sdskskdsk thank you guys for the support? it actually means so much to me thank you guys so much <3  
> i'm going to try to update this about once a week? i've got a lot of school work so i'm busy almost all week but i'll try to get a chapter out every weekend!!  
> thanks guys love u all <3


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